A campaign group in Scotland had challenged the government’s attempts to allow transgender individuals into roles reserved for women.
The UK Supreme Court ruled on Wednesday that the term “woman” refers to biological sex, not gender identity, meaning that transgender individuals who were born male are not legally considered women for the purposes of single-sex protections.
The ruling comes after the For Women Scotland rights campaign challenged a Scottish Government law aimed at increasing the number of women on public boards, which included transgender women with legal recognition as female.
The group claimed this violated the UK-wide Equality Act 2010 – a law that protects people from discrimination based on characteristics like sex, race, and disability. They asked the UK Supreme Court to confirm that “woman” in the Act means biological female, not someone assigned female status through a gender recognition certificate.
In its judgment, the court stated that “the terms ‘women’ and ‘sex’ in the Equality Act 2010 refer to a biological woman and biological sex,” adding that interpreting sex to include acquired gender “would lead to incoherence” in provisions protecting women on the basis of pregnancy, maternity, and other sex-specific criteria.
A government spokesperson, responding to the judgment, stated that the ruling “brings clarity and confidence, for women and service providers such as hospitals, refuges, and sports clubs.” The spokesperson added that “single-sex spaces are protected in law and will always be protected by this government.”
Lord Hodge, one of the presiding justices, also noted that the court did not view the ruling as “a triumph” of one group over another and that it was simply necessary to provide legal clarity on the meaning of terms in existing legislation.
British author J.K. Rowling, one of the most prominent supporters of For Women Scotland, also hailed the court’s ruling.
“It took three extraordinary, tenacious Scottish women with an army behind them to get this case heard by the Supreme Court and, in winning, they’ve protected the rights of women and girls across the UK,” the writer said on X.
Some, however, have criticized the Supreme Court’s decision, claiming it could reduce legal recognition for transgender people. The Scottish Greens issued a statement slamming the ruling, calling it “deeply concerning for human rights.” LGBTQ+ charity Stonewall also expressed “deep concern at the widespread implications” of the move.
UK Supreme Court just ruled that law defines women as people born biologically female.
This is a huge win for women, men, and sanity in the UK and the West.
Now every country needs to get onboard and recognize in law what is a woman.
Congratulations to UK women! pic.twitter.com/nJU0zQvIgl
— Paul A. Szypula 🇺🇸 (@Bubblebathgirl) April 16, 2025
It took the UK Supreme Court to determine something so simple and obvious? Because of the fake definitions imposed and entrenched for far too long by idiot politicians on ordinary people? What a colossal and stupid waste of taxpayer funds. Hopefully the idiot politicians won’t need to redefine what two plus three might equal.
Unbelievable that all this court money is wasted on something so basic that EVERYONE already lnows.
About time common sense rules
Yippity yipster
What is to become of the boys and young men who have been convinced they were born into the wrong body? What punishment, what law is there to address the none reversible harm, that cutting up of their sex organs? Who were the doctors, teachers, psychologists, doctors and surgeons?
Send them all to El Salvador prison.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CtnFVqIl1Kc
So have the courts now been told by the powers that ought not be, to be the peoples “white knights”?
Courts need to promote constant conflict to enable the judges, lawyers, shrinks, social workers etc to make more $$. So there will be an appeal against the Supreme Court, then another appeal, then yet another court case. Lots of gravy on the gravy train.
Does little to reverse the Fascistic woke-ism that’s poisoned the UK. The insane hate speech laws that see creepy virtue cops, pestering an arresting nice ordinary people for free speech remains.
This is a kick in the balls to trans women everywhere
😂😂🌟
Runs parallel to the same court declaration as in the U.S. 2 weeks ago…
Western Governments always do mandates, edicts and law changes parallel and identical to one another.
Can we see the globalist patterns of governance and behaviours???
Amazing.
It only took 5 years for the UK legal system to decide that ‘a woman is a woman, and a man is not a woman’.
Nice work if you can get it.
Believe the science.
Fortunately objective reality will always prove to be an insurmountable hurdle for the lefty-woke dimwits.
Huh, so men aren’t actually women.
Gosh, who knew.
Welcome to woke-retarded-idiotic-indocrinated-moronic-clown-world.
Ah yep.
Men aren’t women as its ‘legally’ turned out in the U.K.
Meanwhile here in NZ…
Maybe someone can send this to Hipkins, he needs educating.